Washing-machine



(No Model.) 2 sneetsfsneet 1.

H. B. ROACH. WASHING MACHINE.

No. 588,604. Patented 1897.

(No Model.) H B .y 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. Y WAHIG MAGHIN'E.y

No. 588,604. Patented Aug. 2,4, 1897.

L I n e o: #i s ,1|

A I l s ',l I if I I u M f fr I l r sa JH!! N [u im u 1,1 1\

5 l HIM I 'Illl'lvll UNITED STATE-s 'PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY B. ROACII, OF PARIS, TEXAS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO GEORGE F.HICKS, FRANK O. HICKS, AND JOHNSON HALE, OF LAMAR COUNTY, TEXAS.

WASHING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 588,64, dated August24, 1897.

Appiicatiou flied rebrmfy 17, 1897. semi No. 625,855. da moda.)

T all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY B. ROACH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Paris, in the county of Lamar and State of Texas, haveinvented anew and useful VVashing-Machine,

of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to washingfmachines which combine in onestructure means for heating the suds-.water and maintaining the ro sameat the required temperature, a suds-box having chambered or hollowbottom and sides to secure a circulation of the suds-water independentlyof the agitation'resulting from turning the drum lor clothes-receptacleupon its axis, and a drum removably journaled in the suds-box andcomprising longitudinal slats or bars having bent edge portions forscooping up the suds-water and directing the same into the drum and uponthe clothes conzo tained therein, whereby the washing process is greatlyfacilitated.

For a-full understanding of the merits and advantages of the inventionreference is to be had to the accompanying drawings and the followingdescription.

The improvement is susceptible of various changes in the form,proportion, and the minor details of construction without departing fromthe principle or sacriiicing any. of the 3o advantages thereof, and to afull disclosure of the invention an adaptation thereof is shown in theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of theimproved washing-machine.N Fig. 2 is a per- 3 5 spective view of thefurnace. Fig. 3 is a .transverse section on the line X X of Fig. 4,looking to the' right, asl designated by the arrow. Fig. 4 is a centrallongitudinal section. Fig. 5 is a detail view of the bearing applied 4oto an end of the suds-box. Fig. 6 is a detail view-of a journal-bearingapplied to an end of the drum.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the followingdescription and indicated in 4 5 the several views of the accompanyingdrawings by the same reference-characters.

'Ihe furnace is a frame of rectangular form open at its bottom andclosed at its top by a hinged cover 1, and the front end of this 5oframe 2 is provided with a door 3 for the admission of fuel and thestirring of the fire.

I A smoke-pipe 4 communicates with the opposite end of the furnace andcarries off the smoke to a safe distance. This furnace is especiallydesigned for outdoor use or to be placed upon a hearth, the ground orthe hearth forming a support for the fuel, which will be wood, bagasse,or other suitable material. v

The furnace is constructed of sheet metal 6o `and is strengthened bystrips 5 and is provided at its upper end with an angle-bar G, whichforms a support for the suds-box 7, the vertical portion of theangle-bar serving to retain the suds-box in place,`as will be readily 65 understood on reference to Figs. 3 and 4.

. :The suds-box 7 is of rectangular form and flares slightly toward itsupper end and is closed by a cover 8, of arched form a'ndhav* ing adepending rim 9 to enter the open end 7o of the box 7 and an outerflange 10 to rest upon the top edge of the said box. This cover has ahandle 11, by means of which it is con- Y veniently manipulated. Similarbearings 12,

of T-form, are secured to the inner faces of the ends of the suds-boxand have notches 13 in their top edges to receive the journals 14,provided at theends of the drum 15. The

bottom and sides of the suds-box are' chambered or made hollow, asindicated at 16, for 8o a purpose presently to be described. Simi. larplates 17, extending the entire length of the suds-box, are secured attheir upper l edges to the sides of the suds-box a short distance fromtheir top edges and curve toward the outer' corners of the box betweentheir top and bottom edges and have their lower 'edges secured tothebottom of the suds-box a short dist-ance froma plane passingvertically between the sides of the suds-box. 9o The lower edge portionsof the plates 17 curve away from each other, as shown at 18, and have apocket or space 19 formed between them, and these bent portions ,have a4series of openings 20 to permitthe suds-water to 95 pass from'theboxinto the chambers or spaces 16. A series of openings 21 are providedin the plates 17 near their upper edges. When the machine is inoperation, the steam and hot water rise in the spaces or chambers 16 andpass through the openings 21 into the upper portion yof the box, and thehot water IOO discharging upon the clothes in the drum passes throughthem and materially assists in the Washing process and, gravitating tothe pocket 19, again passes into the chambers 1G through the openings20, when the operation just described is repeated.

The drum 15 is of skeleton form and is provided at its ends withjournals 14, which obtain bearings in the parts 12, as hereinbeforestated. The journals 14C have arms 22 radiating therefrom, forming aspider-casting, as indicated in Fig. 6, and these spiders are secured tothe ends of the drum in any substantial manner. One of the journals hasan angular opening 23 to receive an angular portion of a crank 24, whichis removably fitted thereto for rotating or turning the drum upon `itsjournals.

Access is had to the interior of the drum by means of a door 25, forminga portion thereof and closing an opening provided in a side of the drum.This door is hinged at one edge, as shown at 2G, and is held closed by acatch 27 at its opposite edge and which springs over a bar borderingupon the opening closed by the door 25.

A series of slats or bars 2S are disposed longitudinally in parallelrelation and are located at regular intervals apart and are secured inany convenient manner to the ends or heads of the drum and arecomparatively thin and wide and placed with their width extendingradially. The outer edge portions of these slats or bars project beyondthe plane of the wires 30 and are bent approximately at right angles, asshown at 29, so as to scoop up the water when the drum is rotated. Theslats or bars are disposed so that one half have their bent edgeportions 29 facing in one direction and the other half have their bentedges facing in the opposite direction, thereby providing forA thescooping up of the Water upon turning the drum in either'direction. Thebent edge portions facing in one direction are not grouped, but areequally distributed about the circumference of the drum, so as to scoopup the Water at regular intervals. A series of wires 30, extending inpar allel relation, are passed through openings formed in the slats orbars 28 intermediate of their inner and outer edges and close the spacesformed between the said slats or bars, whereby the clothes are retainedwithin the drum when the machine is in operation. The inner edgeportions of the slats or bars form agitators or beaters and the outeredge portions splashers, paddles, or scoops to insure -operation justdescribed. The process of washing is greatly facilitated by operatingthe drum either by turning it slowly in one or the other direction or byoscillating it upon its journals, as may be desired. By remov'- ing thecover S and withdrawing the crank 24 the drum maybe lifted'from thesuds-box for any purpose, as will be readily understood.

IIavin g thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is- In awashing-machine, the combination with a suds-box, of similar platesapplied to the interior of the suds-box and extending the full lengththereof, and curving in opposite directions between their top and bottomedges, and having their upper edges deflected and secured to the sidesof the box a short distance from their top edges and provided withopenings, and having their lower edges touching and secured to thebottom of the box a short distance from a vertical longitudinal planepassing centrally through the box, and curving oppositely and spacedapart, forminga pocket, and provided with a series of openings,substantially as set forth for the purpose described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

HENRY B. ROACII.

Witnesses XV. F. GILL, .1. N. BLAKE.

